Button



Patented May 19, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANKLIN R. WHITE, OF WATERB'URY, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE PATENTBUTTON COMPANY, OF WATERBURY,

N ECTICUT.

CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF CON- BUTTON.

Application filed March 8, 1924. Serial No. 697,938.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, FRANKLIN R. WHITE, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Waterbury, in the county of New Haven and State ofConnecticut, have madeA and invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Buttons, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to buttons and particularly to that type or classof buttons which are formed of malleable metal and sized or shaped bythe action of heading or swedging dies. This type of button isordinarily made from a wire rod blank, and,

. due to the manner in which it is formed,the

top of the button canI be of any desired configuration or possess anydesired ornamentation. Heretofore, however, in forming the button lwithirregularly shaped heads, it was not thought possible to provide thehead of the button with'an ornamental cap. There is a large class oftrade, however, which requires buttons having a top of brass or similarappearing metal, and it is accordingly the object of my invention toprovide a button and a method of forming the same whereby the body ofthe button is swedged or formed from a suitable malleable metal, such asaluminum or zinc, and to permanently aflix and attach thereto anornamental cap, the body of the button and the cap being subjected tothe action of suitable dies -prior to the completion of the button,whereby both the head of the button and the ornamental cap will becaused to take up the irregular and ornamental shape and be suitablyinscribed or ornamented and at the same time a most rigid attachmentobtained between the cap and the head of the button.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, my invention consists inthe improved button and method of forming the same illustrated in theaccompanying drawings and hereinafter described and c aimed, and' invsuch variations and modifications thereof as will beobvious to thoseskilled in the art to which my invention relates, it being understoodthat changes may be made with- 50 in the scope of what is claimedwithout departing from the spirit thereof.

The preferred embodiment of my invention is disclosed in theaccompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 1s a View 1n elevation of a rod or wire from which my button isformed;

partially in' section illustrating the cap as mounted upon the top ofthebutton and the two subjected'to the second set of operating dies wherebythe rim of the cap has been turned inwardly and compressed against theside walls of the top of the button, the latter also being swedgedinwardly by the pressure of the dies;

Figure 4 is a bottom plan view ofthe foregoing;

Figure 5 is a bottom plan view of the body of the button and'cap afterbeing subjected to the action of the third or finishing set of dies;

Figure 6 is a view in section taken on the line 6-6 of Figure 5;

Figure 7 is a view in vertical section of my improved button, the hub inthis instance being provided with a hard metal anchor for the fastener;

Figure 8 is a view in vertical section illustrating my improved `buttonas attached to garment material.

Referring specifically to the several views, wherein similar referencenumerals designate corresponding parts throughout, the rod 10 representsa conventional form of wire such as used in heading machines for theformation of rivets and in the present instance is preferably made ofaluminum, zinc or other suitable material which may be readily formedinto buttons without requiring undue pressure or force to be exerted bythe heading machine. The wire is automatically cut to llength asillustrated by the dotted lines 11, and each length or slug after beingsubjected to the first heading or forming dies not shown) will becomposed of an upper ange 12 and a hub 13 into which projects theopening. 14.v This firststage blank receives thereon va suitable cap 15,preferably formed of brass or some other suitable and ornamentalmaterial, and the cap and first-stage blank are then subjected tosuitable dies (not shown) whereby the downwardly extending rini 16 ofthe cap is inwardly bent, as illustrated in Figure 3, and the pressurewhereby the inward bending of the rim of the cap -is accomplished alsocorrespondingly tapers the flange 12. of the rst operation blank.

The second operation blank, as illustrated in Figure 3, is thensubjected to the action of suitable dies (not shown) and considerablepressure is exerted upon the ange 12 and the cap 15, causing the metalof the flange 12 and the metal of the cap to be forced outwardly andinasense extruded, considerably enlarging the diameter of the flan e 12 andat the same timereducing the thic ness of the same and thereby formingthe head 17 of the button, as illustrated in Figure 6. As illustrated inFigure 5, the head of the button is preferably given an irregular shape,as at 18, which irregular shape may partake. of the nature of a fourleafclover or any other desired shape. In this swedging and headingoperation, the metal 12 of the ange of the rst operation blank and themetal of the cap lare compressed together underenormous pressure andin asense amalgamated and joined together so as to practically form a rigidunit, particularly so in that the rim 16 of the cap now extendscompletely around the head of the buttonl as at 19. Furthermore,attention is called to the fact that the underside 2O of the vhead issmooth and that the metal of. the body of the button and the metal ofthe cap form a continuation one of the other, so that the buttonnot-only presents a neat, pleasin and ornamentaly appearance, but the uner surface is smooth and the button accordingly extremely ractical andusable. The cap is preferably ormed of brass and thus makes the buttonideal for use in the overall trade, wherein brass buttons are usuallyspecified.

The button as illustrated in Figures 5 and 6 is thenl subjected to theaction of one further set of dies whereby the openin 14, which extendsinwardly into the hu is transformed into a 'chamber 21, as illustratedin Fig. 8,\ the extremity of the hub being contracted as at 22, thusproviding a restricted opening leading into the chamber 21. 1

LThe button is ordinarily held to the garment by the use of thetack'fastene'r23 which is headed and turned within therelstrictedchamber in the customary mannen In Figure 7 I have disclosed a somewhatmodified form of my button wherein the hub 24 is provided withthecustomary form of anchor 25 which is formed of hard metal and is thuscapable of receiving and headprovided with a rim extending around thehead of the button and-forming a continuation of the under side of thehead.

2. A button composed of a body portion including a head and a hub, a cap-mounted upon said head, and theV head and cap formed to present anirregularly shaped periphery of' the head and cap, the underportion ofthe capbeing formed so that the undersurface of the head and the saidunder surface of the cap form a continuing smooth, unbroken surface. t

13. A button composed of a body portion including -a head and a hub, thelatter being provided with a fastening receiving chamber therein, a capmounted upon said head, and the head and cap j being formed to presentanirregularly shaped periphery, the under portion of the cap having a rimmerging with the under side of the head to form a smooth and unbrokensurface.

4. A button composed of a body portion including an annular head 'and acap fitting over said head, said cap and said head being formed topresent an irre ularly vshaped periphery ofthe cap and head, vided witha rim extending around the under surface of'the head and forming acontinuation and unbroken surface with the under surface of the head.

5. A button composed of a body including a head and a hub, a cap mountedupon the cap prothehead and said cap forming a non-separable unit, theperiphery of the head and cap being irregular in shape, and the face ofthe cap provlded with an ornamental configuration thereon,

a vrim merging with the under surface of Athe head to thereby present asmooth vand vunbroken surface.

. 6. A button formed of metal having a hub and circular head, a circularc ap'mounted on said head and theY head and cap formed to presentanirregularly shaped head and cap with respect to their periphery, thecap merging with ton head to form an unbroken' surface.

7. A button formed from a soft metal the head kof which is circular inoutsaid cap provided with the under surface of the butj formedv topresentan irregularly shaped A periphery, symmetrical in outline, anornahead ornamentally in configuration, thel conmentation formed onthe'cap, and the cap figuration extending into the periphery of providedwith arim that lies .flush with the head and cap, thus presentin anirregu- '15 I the under surface of the head to present a. ,lar andsymmetrical periphery or the butv 6 substantial integral head and cap.tonhead. f

8. A 'button formed from a soit metal Signed at Waterbury, in thecountyv of blank the head of the blank being circular New Haven andState of Connecticut, this in outline, a hub formedjon said head, asixth day of March A. D. 1924.

A cap of hard metal correspondin to the FRANKLIN R. WHITE. 10 shape of.the blank and the cap an the head Witnesses:

being shaped to thus tightly secure the cap E. M. Mon'roN,

to the head and to alsoform the cap and C. G. BOBEL.

